BTL-A5 Y-Wing
Since the retirement of the BTL-A4 and BTL-S3, many Republic Army commanders have commented on the lack of an effective close air support, supply interdiction/attack platform. Though the Koensayr Manufacturing BTL-S8 “K-Wing” is meant to take up these roles, it has proven far less flexible than the older BTL-A4/S3 “Y-Wing”, and is most effective as a bombardment platform and capital ship destroyer. With the BTL-S8 and the older Slayn & Korpil “B-Wing” being more than effective in these roles, the New Republic has invested in upgraded Y-Wing's in a program spearheaded by Republic Starfighter Corps General Kevan Kanellikas. The need for a dedicated close air support, interdiction/attack platform that could enter hyperspace on its own became obvious during engagements where the “K-Wing” proved ungainly and ill suited, most notably during the Yevethan Crisis. It's large size, low maneuverability at attack speeds, combined with its heavy reliance on external weapons stores (rather than internal weapons) led to the calls by many front line Army commanders for the reactivation of the venerable “Y-Wing's”. Instead of bringing old equipment back to frontline service, the New Republic Senate charged the Republic Starfighter Corps with a study; Evaluate the possibility of an altogether new ship, or the feasibility of upgraded “Y-Wing's” as new attack platforms. This study was led by General Kanellikas, a career “Y-Wing” pilot and head of the New Republic Fighter Weapons School. The study found that the most cost effective action would be to take decommissioned BTL-A4's being held in storage, and have them effectively rebuilt with modern equipment and weaponry. Thus, the BTL-A5 was born. Compared to older models, the BTL-A5 is some 20% faster, using R300 Ion Jet engines derived from the original R200's used on the BTL-A4/S3. In order to ensure parts and commonality within the modern fighter fleet, it has an upgraded avionics package and navigation system borrowed from the “B-Wing”; targeting systems that are in use by the RZ-1 mk. II “A-Wing” and T-65CA4 “X-Wing”; and many other smaller systems too detailed to account for here. The BTL-A5 retains many legacy systems of the original Civil War era BTL-A4/S3, including its original hyperdrive unit, shield projectors, counter measure chaff/flare dispensers and jamming equipment, and H-HUD uplink from the targeting computer. Note that the inefficient drop-down scope targeting method used early in the Galactic Civil War (most notably during the Battle of Yavin) has been eliminated. The BTL-A5 retains the legendary durability and shield power of its predecessors. Pilot workload has been greatly reduced compared to old models of the “Y-Wing”; the entire forward control panel of the cockpit has been rebuilt to three large multi-function displays that can be configured and customized be each individual pilot to display anything from HUD data, targeting information, systems information, navigation, sensor output, etc. Original cockpit systems retained include the shield strength indicators, and the sensor scopes at the top left and right of the main viewport. Note that the engine controls on the left hand dashboard, and power management controls of the original BTL-A4/S3 models have also been retained. With so many of the older models in storage, the program has plenty of spare parts. Other advantages over older generations of “Y-Wing's” include the use of a firing mode inspired by the stutter-fire capable “K-Wing”. Using specially made cannons co-designed by Koensayr and Taim & Bak, the BTL-A5 has selectable fire rates from the standard two shots per second (one per cannon, or 120 shots per minute), up to 53 shots per second (26 shots per cannon, or 3,180 shots per minute). What this means is, the BTL-A5 is able to fire all its charged particles (as opposed to stutter-fire, which only fires low intensity beams) in the main cannon in bursts of two, four, six and up to eight seconds (for a total of 424 rounds on target maximum). This is especially effective as a close air support platform; where hard targets may need several passes by other fighters to inflict damage, the BTL-A5 can do it in one. The downside to this system is that the cannon system has a recharge time double the amount of time fired; a two second burst means that the cannons will need four seconds to get back to full charge, or an eight second burst means it will need sixteen seconds to get back up to full power. In addition, frequent, successive use of this system has led to overheating and warping of the main gun barrel's, and is best used in moderation with cool-down time. Note that the ion cannon's do not have the same capability. Though its internal bay has not been expanded, the BTL-A5 is able to carry four more weapons on external pylons added under the main engine spars. The pylons have three stores, and two are able to carry nearly any weapon in the Republic arsenal. The third store is meant for external fuel pods, which greatly increase the operation radius of the BTL-A5. Note than under full load, the fuel pods become necessary to bring the BTL-A5 to its maximum operating radius (and beyond), and must be dropped upon the beginning of combat operations. These external weapons stores have an adverse affect on maneuverability and acceleration, particularly at low speeds, and as such are typically the first weapons fired by the pilot in combat operations. To improve upon its role as a dedicated close air support ship, the BTL-A5 was given a larger fuel reserve for greater loiter time (up to one hour combat time with engines at military power), and vectored thrust nozzle's that greatly improve its maneuverability, almost putting it on par with the “A-Wing”. It is meant for use at speeds below 300 knots in an atmosphere, standard attack speeds, but in spaceflight it is useful at any speed. The downside to this is that in an atmosphere, the BTL-A5's primary operating area, the vectored thrust is not very useful past 500 knots, leaving the ship with the maneuverability of the Civil War-era BTL-A4. The BTL-A5 is currently undergoing trials in joint operations with the Republic Navy and Starfighter Corps, still headed by General Kanellikas. So far, twelve ships have been brought to operational status, comprising one full squadron. It has not seen its combat debut yet, nor has it been made known to the public that the iconic “Y-Wing” is tentatively back on frontline service. Once the trials are over, the final decision whether or not to go into full production (or “reproduction” as some in the program have taken to call it) will go forward. Category:New Republic Starfighters Category:Starfighters Category:Bombers